Manual vehicle fitness inspections have been discontinued across the state from Monday, with the fitness testing of over 23 lakh commercial vehicles now being conducted exclusively at private Automated Testing Stations (ATS).
Under the new system, commercial vehicles from all 75 districts have been mapped to the nearest of 13 private ATS centres. While booking a fitness appointment online, vehicle owners are automatically allotted a slot at the nearest designated centre.
According to officials, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had issued directives on November 14, 2024, and April 1, 2025, instructing the state government to ensure that vehicle fitness tests be conducted only at Automated Testing Stations. Following these instructions, the Transport Department issued an order on November 17, mandating full implementation from January 1. Compliance began from Monday, ending the system of manual fitness checks.
Each ATS has now been assigned a catchment area of approximately 100 kilometres. Earlier, most districts conducted fitness tests manually, but under the new arrangement, commercial vehicles are being directed to specific private centres.
In the Lucknow region, fitness tests are being conducted at the AKRS ATS Private Limited centre in Bakshi Ka Talab. Vehicles from Raebareli, Unnao, Barabanki, Hardoi, and Sitapur have also been linked to this centre, causing concern among commercial drivers and operators who now face long-distance travel for testing. For instance, vehicles from Maholi in Sitapur district will have to travel over 150 kilometres round-trip, posing particular difficulties for e-rickshaw operators, whose batteries may not sustain such distances.
ARTO (Administration) Lucknow Pradeep Kumar Singh said that vehicles from districts around the capital are being allotted to private ATS centres. He added that vehicles from Raebareli can also use the ATS in Fatehpur, while vehicles from Unnao may go to Kanpur for fitness certification.
Under existing rules, new commercial vehicles must undergo fitness testing every two years for the first eight years, and annually thereafter. Vehicles operating without a valid fitness certificate face a fine of Rs 5,000 for the first offence and Rs 10,000 for subsequent violations.
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The state government had approved the establishment of three private ATS centres in each district to ease the burden of testing. However, progress remains slow. In the capital, only one ATS is operational, while a second centre in Banthara is ready but yet to begin operations.
At present, ATS facilities are functioning in Bijnor, Firozabad, Jhansi, Kanpur Dehat, Moradabad, Varanasi, Bareilly, Rampur, Fatehpur, Kanpur Nagar, Agra, and Mirzapur. Several more centres are expected to become operational soon, while applications for additional ATS units are still pending approval.